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The story thus far...
The story thus far… Chapter 1: The Flacid Sword In a tavern in the city of Dartleport, several companions found themselves in a small tavern not too far from the docks. A agile Elvish archer named Veressa, a slightly empty-headed Dragonborn with a bad temper named Crushem, a crafty Dwarf tinkering in the corner named Malakai, an Eladrin mage named Forice having a discussion with a plant, a Minotaur bartender with a love for his job named Runic, and a skittish Halfling sipping his mead named Fardeep. As all seemed peaceful in the Flacid Sword Tavern, in came a group of five dark cloaked men, each wielding deadly weaponry. A few short words were shared between the strangers and the Halfling before a full on fight began. Rushing to the aid of the Halfling, the four adventurers were able to repel assailants and barricade the door. The Halfling explained that he held an artifact that the assailants wanted, a shard of the legendary Rod of Law. While he held one piece, the cultists whom attacked him held another in a nearby abandoned castle. To make matters worse, the cultists appear to have hired the deadly mercenary band known as the Alpaca Clan. After a quick flight from the city, leaving the cultists and the Clan members in the dust, the unlikely group made their way to Castle Grimotle, where they infiltrated through the sewers and made their way to the throne room. In the throne room, they encountered two dangerous figures. Duaz, the leader of the Alpaca Clan members at Grimotle, and an ominous mage by the name of Jeff-R, whom commands the cultists. After defeating Duaz, Jeff-R quickly retreated, casting a powerful spell that brought Castle Grimotle crumbling to the ground with the Team inside it. Sensing that Fardeep was not being completely honest with them, while the castle came crashing down around, Forice secretly cast a sleep spell on Fardeep, knocking him unconscious and allowing Forice to examine his pockets, in which he found a patch with the Alpaca Clan symbol on it. After a hasty exit through a secret tunnel, the team reached the surface, only to be confronted by a large group of surviving cultists and Alpaca Clan members. All seemed lost until the timely arrival of Runic, whom gather many of his old war buddies from Dartleport to save the group and slaughter the cultists. Just as Fardeep wakes up from his spell-induced sleep, Crushem quickly knocked him unconscious with a swift punch. Chapter 2: The SS. Unsinkable II After finding that they are safe from the cultists, Forice exposes Fardeep’s deception, whom under heavy interrogation, reveals he was a member of the Alpaca Clan, sent to Castle Grimotle to find the second shard of the Rod of Law. Working alongside his fellow Halfling Mirak, Fardeep was able to steal only one of the pieces before quickly fleeing with Mirak and hiding in Dartleport. Once in Dartleport, Fardeep had chartered a boat for the following day, yet his plans were foiled when Mirak was captured and revealed Fardeep’s location. Utilizing the best of a bad situation, Runic charges the Forice, Veressa, Malakai, and Crushem to use Fardeep’s chartered ship and sail to Syrian, taking both shards of the Rod of Law to Seraph where they will be safe until they can come up with a plan. Runic reveals himself as a retired member of the Band of the Red Stallion, a mercenary group that served under Seraph during the Great War, and leaves his top orc, Dickbutt, to escort the Team to the Dartleport docks, while he himself takes the long way around the Skylian Gulf to gather former members of the Band back together, as he feels that a united Band of the Red Stallion will be needed soon. After making their way back to Dartleport with both pieces of the Rod of Law, the Team made their way into the city, where they immediately knew they were being watched. Quickly making their way to the docks, they meet Captain Fireproof, captain of the SS. Unsinkable II. While the Captain would like to leave, a battalion of Communan soldiers have forbidden any ships from leaving the port. Knowing they need to leave immediately, Dickbutt begins a large riot throughout the city, diverting Communa soldiers from the docks and letting the SS. Unsinkable II escape, although not before Captain Fireproof is quickly incinerated to death by a Communa mage. Just as they escaped from the harbor however, a curious object began to raise itself above Dartleport, a black pulsating orb that seemed to rise on its own. In the blink of an eye, a flash of light erupted from the orb, utterly leveling the city, reducing it to a smoldering crater. Unable to maintain control of the ship due to lack of experience among the Team, the SS. Unsinkable II is forced out to sea, where it is caught by a very strong headwind, a headwind not of natural origin. Chapter 3: Kilya’n’maryatadeath Island Caught in the midst of a mysteriously powerful wind, the Team could only drift along, guided by the everchanging breeze overhead. After three days of drifting, the Team spies in the distance a large island, toward which the wind is propelling them. After quickly dropping the anchor, the Team onto shore on their lifeboat, landing next to a crashed Communan ship. After a bit of reconnaissance, they identify that the crew was captured by